Here I Go Again
by LeahAnne
Summary: Amy and Ricky are finally in a relationship.  But what happens when they repeat the same mistake they made before?  Ramy/implied Bendrian, includes pregnancy, sex
1. All Night Long

Chapter 1: All Night Long

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**Disclaimer: **I am not Brenda Hampton, nor any of the producers or writers of "The Secret Life of the American Teenager", hereby referred to as TSLOTAT. I claim no representation of any of the above people and I am not affiliated with Brenda Hampton or ABCFamily.

**A/N: **I just thought I would try my hand at a TSLOTAT fan fic since there aren't very many dealing with the subject material that I would like to deal with. :)

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"Come on, John, let's go to Daddy's house!" I said to my son, taking his small hand into my own and shutting the door behind me, adjusted his diaper bag on my shoulder. John rubbed his eyes sleepily and sighing, I picked him up and he buried his face into my shoulder. I walked over to the SUV and opened it, putting him in his car seat. His head lolled to the side as he fell asleep. I smiled to myself and got into the driver's seat and made my way to Ricky's.

Pulling up behind the butcher shop, I sighed. This was so new to me, going to Ricky's house, taking our son to see him, being in this new relationship... Thinking of Ricky as my _boyfriend_ was such a foreign concept. But seeing him with our son, how good he was with him and how much they loved each other only made me love him more. I wished we had gotten our heads screwed back on sooner... but all of that was behind us now.

I turned the key in the ignition and the car shuttered into silence. I grabbed John's diaper bag out of the passenger-side seat and pulled John out of his car seat. He was still asleep. I quietly shut the car doors and crept toward the butcher shop, doing my best to avoid waking him up.

I knocked on the door to Ricky's apartment and John sleepily stirred, burying his face deeper into my shoulder.

_Come on, Ricky, _I thought to myself.

The door slowly opened and Ricky smiled at me, his whole face lighting up. He stepped to the side and I walked into the apartment and offered him the diaper bag on my shoulder. He took it and I walked into the bedroom, putting a slumbering John into the crib beside Ricky's bed.

"Hey there," Ricky said as I re-entered the living room. "What's up?" He leaned over and kissed me, taking me by surprise.

"Same old, same old," I bit my bottom lip and smirked at him, taking a seat on the couch. I ran a hand through my hair. "I just needed to get away from the drama that is Mom and Dad and Ashley. Apparently Mom and Dad _aren't _getting remarried and I just didn't want to hear them discussing it again. I know they're being civil about it, but I just can't deal with it all right now."

Ricky nodded. "I understand. That has to be stressful."

I nodded.

"Maybe I can relieve that stress?" he suggested. I wasn't sure what he meant.

"I don't know if I'm ready to take that step – " I said, crossing my arms over my chest. "I mean, I remember all too well having John and that whole experience kinda – "

"Whoa, Amy," Ricky said, his eyes growing wide. "That's definitely not what I meant. I just meant that maybe I could give you a back massage or something. You know, to relieve the stress."

I blushed. "Umn, sure. That would be fine. My neck is starting to feel sort of stiff."

"Probably all that stress," he sighed, digging into my neck a bit with the tips of of his fingers. I twisted my neck a bit and moaned as I felt it pop.

"Mhmnn... that feels amazing," I sighed.

"Good. Do you want to watch a movie or something? I kinda feel bad just sitting here while you do nothing," he said, jumping up.

I pulled him back down. "I'm fine, honestly. I just wanted to sit here with you and maybe do some of this..." I leaned up and once my face was level with his, I kissed him, pushing him back onto the couch and crawling on top of him.

"Maybe I just came over here so I could cuddle with you and not have to share you with anyone else..." I teased.

"I don't have a problem with that," Ricky smirked, kissing me.

He pulled away and I smiled back up at him.

"And you haven't had to share me with someone else for some time," he said, looking at me closely. "I haven't had sex with anyone since our first date three months ago. I only want _you_."

I was taken aback by his sincerity.

"Really?" I asked him softly.

"Really. Look, you told me that if I let go of all the women that were in my life that there might be a chance for us. And I didn't do it just because I wanted to have sex with you... I did it because it was the best thing for us, as a family. I want you and John and I to be a family and I want you guys to live here with me."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"But isn't it a bit soon for me to be moving in here?" I asked him. "I mean, even if we are in a relationship or whatever, three months in, I wouldn't be living with you."

"I know," Ricky replied. "And that's not what I'm asking you to do right now. I just think that down the road, once we've been in a committed relationship for a while, that I want you and John to live here full-time, so I can be the best dad to our son that I can be. And I want to be there for you, too."

"Ricky..." I didn't know what to say.

"You look completely wiped out. I know you only came over here so we could talk, but you guys should stay. It's not like you haven't done it before and just like last time, I can sleep out here on the couch..."

"No," I found myself saying. "That bed's plenty big enough for both of us." I peered up through my eyelashes at him and saw his strength wavering.

"Are you sure?" he breathed.

"I'm positive." I got up and intertwined my hand in his his and the two of us got went back to the bedroom. He threw me one of his large T-shirts and he rummaged through his dresser. While his back was turned, I peeled off my baby doll shirt and dark wash jeans. He turned around with his sweatpants in hand and froze, locking eyes with me in shock. I just smirked at him as I stood in his bedroom in only my bra and panties.

He closed his eyes and turned around.

"What's wrong, Ricky? You've already seen me in less than this..." I trailed off, teasing.

"That's not the point. Amy, you don't want to have another kid, do you? Because if you go to sleep like that, I don't think I'm gonna be able to keep my hands off of you."

"Don't be silly," I grinned. "I'm going to wear the T-shirt."

He pulled off his pants and his T-shirt and put his sweatpants on over his boxers.

"Just the T-shirt?" he choked.

"I get hot when I'm sleeping. Besides, it's a lot more comfortable and your T-shirts are so long that they're going to cover up everything anyway."

I folded my shirt and my pants neatly and walked over and put them on top of Ricky's dresser. Then, I turned around and crawled on top of the bed to the the top of the blankets and got underneath.

Ricky followed suit, throwing his dirty clothes in his laundry hamper and checking on John next to his side of the bed. He was still fast asleep.

He crawled into bed next to me and awkwardly situated himself so he was eye-level with me.

"I'm so glad you're home," he said, leaning over to tuck a piece of my hair behind my ear.

"Me, too," I replied. And I knew that this really was my home. I had known it for a while. Being here with John and Ricky as a family, I knew that _this_ was where I belonged.

I leaned forward and kissed Ricky and suddenly, the kiss grew in intensity and his arms were around me and we were both breathing heavily as the heat enveloped us.

"Did you promise your parents we wouldn't do anything?" Ricky breathed.

"No," I murmured. "That's usually what you do, though, isn't it?"

"Hush," Ricky said, pulling me closer to him.

My hands wrapped around his strong arms and he trailed kisses down my neck and shoulder. He made his way back up and stopped by my ear.

"Should we do anything while John's in here?" he asked.

"He's a baby and he's sleeping. Even if he does wake up, he's too young to have any idea of what's going on..." I breathed.

Ricky froze.

"What?" I asked him.

"Are you giving me permission..." he trailed off.

I climbed on top of him and continued kissing him, not answering his unfinished question. He kissed me back passionately and my hips started grinding against his mid-section. We were both breathing heavily.

And suddenly, I felt it. Right beneath me. I paused.

Ricky hissed.

"Maybe we should stop," he muttered.

"Why?" I asked him, feigning innocence.

"You know exactly why," Ricky said quietly, closing his eyes.

"And what if I say I don't care?" I asked him. "What if I say that tonight, I want to share this with you. Just something between me and you, John's parents. Something that I can give my boyfriend, the father of my child."

I could feel the intensity of Ricky's gaze on me. He was judging, trying to see if I was bluffing.

"Make love to me, Ricky," I pleaded with him.

He didn't need to be asked twice.

Slowly, he peeled the T-shirt off of me, revealing my red bra and panties and he gasped, seeing me once more. I continued grinding against him, hyper aware of his stiff hardness beneath me. He put his hands around my waist, stopping me.

"Am I doing something wrong?" I asked him, feeling self-conscious.

"No," he breathed, shaking his head. "It's just... if you keep doing that, I think I'm going to come before I've even got my sweatpants off."

I blushed and he pulled me off of him and crawled on top of me, unfastening my bra. He smiled at me before leaning down and taking one of my nipples in his mouth, swirling his tongue over it and latching on, sending me into bliss. He hadn't taken so much care the first time.

He leaned down with his free hand and stroked me evenly, feeling my growing wetness.

I hissed, leaning my head back and closing my eyes.

"Shh..." he whispered, looking up at me. "Not so loud..."

I focused on staying quiet and closed my eyes and suddenly, I felt Ricky sliding down and I felt him slide my panties down and suddenly, there was warmth and heat and _ohhhh..._

He was doing something and I wasn't quite sure what. But it felt oh so good... I gasped and suddenly, the heat washed over me and I was shaking and moaning...

"Mhmmn... ohhhh... Ricky..."

He crawled back up to kiss me and I tasted sweetness on his lips.

"I think someone's a little overdressed," I panted, pulling down his sweatpants and his boxers all in one. His penis was freed and it didn't seem quite as foreign and strange as it did the first time.

He continued touching and caressing me and I ached for him.

"Please, Ricky..." I moaned.

"I promise, honey, it won't hurt so much as it did the first time," he murmured in my ear. "Even if it's been a while..."

I nodded.

"Are you sure?" he asked me, gauging my expression.

"Positive," I moaned.

And slowly, with the utmost care, he entered me. I felt myself stretching, but it didn't hurt anywhere near as much as I had expected it to. He thrusted back and forth and instead of letting him take control as I had our previous time together, I pushed back. Our rhythm increased, the bed squeaking in response.

"Ricky, _ohhh_, yes..." I moaned.

And as much as I expected him to cuss or say something vulgar while we were making love, he didn't. His eyes met mine and he wrapped his arms around me as he moved above me. And suddenly, his eyes opened wide and he shook slightly, involuntarily as he came.

"_Ohhh..._" he finished, his weight falling. He supported himself above me with his hands and then he fell to the side of me.

"That was amazing," I told him, cuddling up to him. "Absolutely perfect."

"I told you, Amy. I love you."

"I know," I replied. "I love you, too."

Together, we fell asleep, his arms around me, holding me next to him. And I began to dream...

"_Maybe if Ben hadn't been trying to get together with you when we were having a baby things might have gone differently and maybe I would be flying in at the end of that program to be with you in New York."_

"_Differently how?"_

"_I don't know. I mean, what chance did we ever have at a relationship when he was willing to step in and come to the rescue?"_

"_I guess you're right. But it doesn't make any difference now. I'm coming to my own rescue."_

"_Hey, I've been at your house for two weeks. And I'm gonna be here for another two weeks taking care of our son. I mean, don't you think I've come to your rescue just a little? Huh?"_

"_You're right. John is our son and not just my son so you're not rescuing me. You're just doing your part as John's dad. Not that I don't appreciate it, but that's not coming to my rescue. Right?"_

The dream faded into something else and then I heard Ricky's voice again.

"_This isn't crazy. I don't think it's crazy. I think it's about time that we confronted each other, don't you? Okay, not confront each other, but... it's time we talked, Amy. We – need – to talk."_

"_We can talk when I get back..."_

"_Or we can talk this weekend."_

_The dream faded into my memory of me seeing Ricky in New York._

"_I'm not really here to see New York. I'm just here to see you, Amy."_

"_I promised your parents we wouldn't do anything."_

"_We're not doing anything."_

"_Well, when could we do something? Could we do something? Could we ever have sex again?"_

"_Whoa, whoa, conversation took a turn here. I don't know. I don't know if we could ever have sex again. Could you ever not sleep with every girl you got the chance to sleep with?"_

"_I'm working on that."_

"_Which means you're still sleeping around."_

"_I'm still sleeping around."_

"_Well if you ever want to sleep with me again, you'll stop doing that."_

"_I'll stop doing that."_

My dreams continued to dance around, my thoughts and memories of the two of us intermingling in my head, my mind twisting them around into vague articulations of what I had remembered and what once had been my relationship with Ricky and how it had turned into... _this._

John cried in the middle of the night, waking us both up. Ricky jumped to see what was wrong and I pretended to still be asleep. But through my bleary sleep-muddled brain, I remembered something I had once said to Ricky – "We're a cute family... well, not family... whatever we are."

And his response had been, "What do you want us to be?"

I knew without a doubt exactly what I wanted us to be. I just hoped Ricky wanted the same thing.

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_Please review! That's the only payment I get for doing this and the more reviews I get the more likely I am to update. _

_Much love,_  
_xoxo_


	2. It's the End of the World as We Know It

Chapter 2: It's the End of the World as We Know It

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**Disclaimer: **I am not Brenda Hampton, nor any of the producers or writers of "The Secret Life of the American Teenager", hereby referred to as TSLOTAT. I claim no representation of any of the above people and I am not affiliated with Brenda Hampton or ABCFamily.

* * *

I woke up one morning, feeling as if I'd been hit by a truck.

Seriously.

My muscles ached, my head was pounding, and I had had the worse case of nausea known to mankind. And what was even worse was that John wouldn't keep still. He kept running around the apartment like there was absolutely nothing else to do but show me, his wonderful mother, the woman who brought him _life_, how many different ways he could climb up in my lap, scream, throw his toys across the apartment and make a million and a half messes. I was about to lose it.

I knew Ricky was at work and I knew it wasn't exactly the best move to call him at work, but he was Bunny's favorite and looking outside the apartment window, the butcher shop looked pretty much dead. I knew Ben was supposed to come in at three, so at two-thirty, I went downstairs.

"Bunny?" I croaked.

"God, you look terrible," Bunny said blatantly. "Shouldn't you be upstairs in bed sleeping or something?" she asked. "Don't you dare get me or any of our customers sick!"

"I don't think I'm sick," I replied, looking over at the oozing steak Ricky had left on the table. I felt like vomiting. "Look, I know Ben isn't due here until three and you guys have been relatively slow today. I really need to talk to my boyfriend. When Ben gets here and if you guys are still slow, can you possibly _please_ send Ricky upstairs so I can finally get some sleep? John's had me running around all morning long and I can't take it anymore," I moaned.

"Sure," Bunny said. A slight look of sympathy passed over her face. "Ricky's a good employee and he never asks off. So I know this is a one-time thing. Next time you feel like you're gonna throw up or something, why don't you send the kid to day-care?"

"It's Saturday, Bunny," I groaned, turning around and heaving my way back up the steps.

Ricky came back upstairs right at three o'clock. By that point, I was lying in the middle of the bathroom floor, unable to move. I had never felt so awful in my life, or at least in recent memory.

"Amy?" Ricky asked, coming into the bathroom. "Bunny said you didn't look too well when you came downstairs earlier. But I thought that it was probably just a bug of some sort."

"Does this look like a bug to you?" I croaked. "I've been vomiting out my insides for the past half-hour."

"So that explains why John was in his play pen screaming in the living room when I got in."

I didn't answer Ricky. I just wanted the pounding nausea to go away. I couldn't deal with it anymore.

"Maybe we should take you to the doctor," Ricky said, looking down at me worriedly. "You really don't look so good..."

"No shit, Sherlock. That's the most brilliant idea you've had of the whole day!" I groaned, holding out my hands so he could help me up. "I'm not going to the doctor."

"Why not?" Ricky snapped. "If you're really this sick..."

"I don't have time to be sick. John needs me and I have to work at the day care center all week and the doctor's office isn't open on the weekends!" I sighed. "Look, I'm sorry for snapping at you. I'm just really, _really_ tired, okay?" I kissed Ricky on the cheek and started cleaning up the bathroom. "Will you just watch John for me so I can get a little bit of sleep?"

"No offense, Amy, but you must be having killer PMS or something," Ricky said, raising his hands in mock surrender. He backed out of the bathroom threw me a small towel to start cleaning the mess I'd made in the floor. I opened up the cabinet to pull out the Lysol and my eyes focused on the tampons sitting beside the cleaning products under the sink.

Suddenly, I paused. When was the last time I'd even _had_ a period? I couldn't remember right off hand. I stood up and looked at the calendar above the toilet. One... two... three... four... _five... **six**_**... **

Oh no. There was no way I was two weeks late. No way in hell! I'd been super stressed, but I'd never been two weeks late, ever. Except for when I found out I was pregnant with John. And by the time I was a week late, I'd already known. I'd taken those three pregnancy tests Lauren had given money to Madison to buy for me the first week of school.

And seventeen wasn't much better than fifteen to be having a baby, especially when it would be my _second_ one.

Oh, no. Oh no oh no oh no oh _no_.

At least Ricky and I were in a committed relationship this time. And if worse came to worse and I was actually_ pregnant_, Ricky wouldn't leave me. We already had one beautiful son together.

But I wasn't even sure Ricky wanted kids. Well, any more kids besides John. We'd only discussed it briefly and it was him asking me and I'd said I wanted to wait for a long while! And he hadn't seemed too enthused about the idea at first, either.

Okay, no need to worry. I didn't even know if I was pregnant or not. There could have been any logical reason besides pregnancy that could have caused my period to come way late. Namely, stress. Being home with John all alone. Balancing work, school, my relationship with Ricky, and raising our son... and the relationship part was new, too. Surely that was _all_ it was.

I took out the Lysol and sprayed it on the toilet and on the floor around the toilet and started scrubbing.

_I'm – not – pregnant. I'm – not – pregnant._

As I continued the scrubbing rhythm around and around on the floor, the words felt like they were punching me in the back of the head.

Suddenly, another wave of nausea passed and I found myself puking in the toilet once more.

Oh, _shit.

* * *

_

That night, John went to bed without a fuss for the first time in weeks. Exhausted, I dragged myself to the bed and climbed under the blankets, thankful that I would get a little bit of sleep for the first time in I wasn't sure how long. Ricky came out of the bathroom and flipped off the light in our room. He settled into bed and held me close, wrapping his arms around me.

I closed my eyes into the blissful blackness of sleep and I felt a hand making its way up my leg and then back down.

"Mhmmn..." I moaned, leaning back into Ricky. I turned around and kissed him softly. His hands made their way up around my waist, under my shirt, massaging my breasts. I winced painfully.

"You okay?" he asked concerned.

"I'm fine," I replied, shrugging off the discomfort.

He kissed down my neck nuzzling the crook of it, his hands rubbing up and down my ribs and slowly removed my shirt. I leaned in and kissed him excitedly and his hands easily unfastened my bra, letting it fall away. He disposed of it and ran one finger across my left breast and I winced again.

"What's wrong?" he breathed.

"Nothing," I said, hoping he wouldn't read into it.

"Why are acting like it hurts when I touch you?" he asked, biting on his bottom lip.

"Because it does," I replied. We were treading on dangerous ice here and I didn't want to push it any further.

"I'm sorry," Ricky said, turning around and laying back in bed, facing the wall.

"Ricky," I sighed. "It's not you, trust me."

"Because that's what you feel like you're _supposed_ to say," he grumbled.

"Ricky, will you please turn around?" I begged him.

"What good will it do?" he scoffed.

"I need to tell you something," I insisted. I didn't want him being mad at me for something neither of exactly had control over. Well, we had control over the reason I felt so horribly, but the rest of it was out of my hands.

"What, that you think I'm being stupid?" he replied, turning to face me.

"No," I said softly. "Ricky, I think I'm pregnant."

His jaw dropped and his eyes searched mine for any sign that I could be bluffing.

"I'm two weeks late. I'm _never_ late. Everything's making me sick and earlier today, I needed you to watch John after you came back home because I was too sick and tired. I'm flat out exhausted all of the time and when I'm not tired or sleeping, I'm throwing up and my boobs hurt like hell. All signs of pregnancy. I was going to go get a test before school on Monday. I wanted to wait to tell you when I was absolutely positive, but I didn't want you thinking you'd done something either."

"I thought you were on the pill!" he snapped.

"I _am_ on the pill! Which is the other reason I need to find out as soon as possible! But I missed a couple of them, I think, and I meant to ask you to use a condom when did it but honestly, there's still some sort of protection even when I miss a pill or two. Guess it wasn't good enough. Or maybe I'm just hallucinating. Ricky, do you honestly _think_ I want another baby before I'm out of high school? John _just_ turned two!"

He didn't answer me.

"Ricky?"

"I'm sorry," he said, hugging me carefully. "I know the consequences of having sex and I just don't think we can afford another oops. I'll go pick up a test for you and I'll be there when you take it." He got up out of bed and picked his jeans up off the floor.

"Now?" I asked, eying him in shock.

"Well, do you honestly think I can sleep after what you just told me?" he asked. "Stay here with John. I don't want to have to get him out unless it's necessary. I think I can pick up a pregnancy test on my own."

I bit my bottom lip in anxiety. Ricky walked back over to me and kissed me.

"Look, I love you and John, okay? Regardless of what happens, that's not going to change. I'll be back in a few."

I left the stick on the sink and set the timer for two minutes. I came out of the bathroom to see Ricky's anxious face looking up at me with concern etched all over it.

"Well?" he asked.

"Too soon to tell. I left it on the sink with the timer set," I replied, sitting down next to him on the bed. It didn't matter; I really didn't need the test. I already knew. I rested my head on his shoulder and he sighed.

The timer when off two minutes later as promised.

"Wait," Ricky said, getting up.

"What?" I asked, turning around. He pulled me closer to him.

"Like I said, no matter what, I'll still love you. And John. And if we're giving John a little brother or sister, then it's okay by me."

I couldn't believe what he was saying.

"Are you sure?" I whispered, tears welling up in my eyes as my voice cracked.

"Positive," he replied. "No pun intended."

I choked back a laugh and turned to go get the test.

And there it was, proudly proclaiming all of its positiveness. My tears spilled over and I shook with the weight of having the truth right in my hand.

I picked the test up off of the sink and opened the door. Ricky locked eyes with me and saw my tears streaming down my face.

"Oh, honey," he said, getting off of the bed and pulling me close to him. "It's okay. It's _really_ okay. We'll make it."

"I'm not ready for this," I said. "Not again. It's too soon!"

"Well, you and Ashley are only about a year apart. At least it's not _that_ soon. It'll be fine. Really. Now John'll have a little uncle _and_ a little brother or sister to play with."

I nodded, looking down at the stick in my hand.

"My dad is going to kill you," I said, trying to hold back a laugh.

"No he won't," Ricky replied. "He knocked your mom up twice within the same calendar year."

* * *

Monday was horrible. Not only did Madison and Lauren want to squeal over the fact that I had moved in with Ricky – a fact that I really didn't want spread around the school – but they were head over heels excited that Ricky and I were dating and that fact had already spread around the school like wildfire.

I put my books for AP Lit in my locker and pulled out my books for American History.

"So you know they're only going out this time because Amy Juergens is pregnant. Again," a feminine voice giggled.

"Hmn, well, I wonder if her sister Ashley sleeps around as much as she does?" some guy asked.

I angrily slammed my locker shut and marched up to the couple talking across the hall. The girl was Zoë McCaffrey, someone I had from a fairly reputable source that Ricky had slept with before we had gotten together.

"Excuse me," I snapped. "But for your information, my relationship with my boyfriend is none of your business and I don't want to hear you talking about it again. When and _if_ we decide to expand our family is none of your business either. Quite frankly, you shouldn't be worrying your pretty little head about it because it looks like I'm passing all of my classes and you're just barely getting by. And dude," I turned to face the guy who was talking about Ashley, "I don't want to see or hear you talking about my sister. Consider that a fair warning."

I stomped off and ran smack dab into Lauren and Madison who were watching the scene from afar.

"Why the hell does everyone think I'm cooking something _again?_" I hissed.

"Cooking? I'm hungry!" Madison replied. "_Oh..._" she said, her eyes opening wide as Lauren rolled her eyes at her. "Well, I mean, you _are_ dating your baby's father, so rumors are going to fly."

"I think it's mostly because it looked like he didn't want anything to do with you until now," Lauren said. "And I didn't say it first, so don't look at me."

I groaned. "Fantastic. I just can't wait to figure out what's going to go around when people find out I'm living with him."

"You're _what?_" Madison squealed.

"That goes nowhere," I warned her.

"When did you move in with him?" Lauren asked. "This just got really serious!"

"Tell me about it," I mumbled. "We've been dating since I got back from New York."

"You didn't tell us that!" Madison pouted.

"Well, we wanted to see if it was going to go anywhere. And well, I ended up moving in with him above the butcher shop. Mom wanted us to both raise John together as a family and as much as she loved having us both at home, she thought it would be good for us."

"So you tamed Ricky the man-whore," Lauren smirked.

"Don't call him that!" I gasped.

"Sorry," she replied. "It's just that I can't even see Ricky being the family man... taking John to daycare? Working during the day while you're at school? It's all so... crazy."

"I know," I replied. "I can scarcely believe it's just been two short months."

"Me either," Madison sighed.

"Like you had anything to do with it," Lauren rolled her eyes. "Look, we better get to class."

I nodded. I waved to both Lauren and Madison and jetted into American History just as the bell rang.

* * *

_Please review! That's the only payment I get for doing this and the more reviews I get the more likely I am to update. _

_Much love,_  
_xoxo_


	3. Just Like Starting Over

Chapter 3: (Just Like) Starting Over

* * *

Disclaimer: No, I'm not Brenda Hampton. No, I don't have anything to do with TSLOTAT, outside of this fan fic. I'm just playing with the characters a bit.

* * *

Once I got the positive pregnancy test, the next thing that I did was call my doctor. Unlike my pregnancy with John, I wanted to be absolutely sure how far along I was and I wanted to get prenatal care as soon as possible.

Dr. Hightower referred me to an OB/GYN and I had an appointment with Dr. Masters at 2:00 the following Tuesday. Due to the symptoms I was having, I had a general idea of about how far along I was, but I wasn't completely sure.

Ricky seemed rather stressed since we'd found out the news. As excited and nervous as we both were to give John a little brother or sister, we were both anxious to make sure everything was okay with both me and the pregnancy.

In the meantime, we had to brainstorm ways to tell our respective families and I knew without a doubt that Mom and Dad were going to flip. And I knew Ricky's family wouldn't exactly be thrilled either. I knew my mom would come around and support me and John no matter what, but I was afraid that Dad would go off on Ricky.

"Perhaps we should wait a while," Ricky said as we pulled up to my parents' house. I had to watch Robbie while my mom went to some sort of work function. Dad was out for the weekend and once again, my parents were battling over when Dad would move out of the house. I felt sorry for Ashley who had to deal with their constant bickering.

"How long?" I asked him. I wanted to be straightforward with them, but I also thought that Ricky and I deserved our privacy as well.

"I don't know. How long until you start showing?" he grumbled.

"I think we should tell them a little before then," I sighed. "I mean, what am I supposed to do? Stay away for two months and then come back with a huge belly and then go, 'Oh, hey, parental figures of authority. I forgot to tell you that I'm pregnant again. Isn't it exciting?' You know they're not going to take it well."

"Well what did you have in mind?" Ricky asked, looking backwards at John in his car seat.

"I guess about twelve weeks would be appropriate. That way I could tell them that I wanted to wait until I was safely out of the miscarriage zone," I sighed.

"Because you and I have to be the most fertile people in the planet," Ricky said wryly.

"Is it really bad news?" I asked him. "I mean, we really didn't plan it, but we're a little better off than we were the first time. We're in a relationship, we're doing fine with John, you're a senior and you'll have already graduated by the time the baby's born and by that time, I'm sure you'll be a manager at the the butcher shop. We have a place to live and a vehicle and I'm sure I can find something after the baby's born..."

"When the job you already have offers free child care? No, I don't think so, Amy. I think keeping your job at the day care center is probably the best idea," Ricky sighed.

The front door opened and Ashley peered outside, seeing Ricky and I sitting in the car.

"At any rate, I think we should probably be getting inside before Ashley thinks something's up," Ricky sighed.

I nodded.

"And whatever you do, don't get sick while we're here. You know that your parents have been keeping a hawk's eye on you since you moved in with me," he added.

"Ricky, it's fine," I sighed, getting out of the SUV and getting John out of his car seat. Ricky grabbed his diaper bag and we headed into the house.

"Hey guys," I announced, setting John down on the floor in the living room. He immediately got up and walked over to his toys in the basket in the corner of the living room.

"Hey, Ames. Hey, Ricky," Dad said, getting out of the recliner. "Your mother's already left. Something about her client getting to work earlier than expected or something. Guess it's a good thing I'm here! Hey, John!" he said, waving to John who didn't even look over at him.

"Hi, Dad. Where's Robbie?" I asked, looking around.

"Sleeping," Dad replied shortly. "So what's been up with you two? Any secrets I should know? 'Cause there better not be!"

Ricky couldn't help but smirk.

"Hey, wipe that look off your face. I'm entrusting you with precious cargo here. You better be taking damn good care of it." And with that, Dad grabbed a banana off the counter in the kitchen and headed back toward Ashley's old room.

"I think your dad is probably going to be the world's most ornery old man in existence," Ricky sighed. "John, come to Daddy," he said, taking a seat on the floor.

"Quite possibly, yes," I remarked. "Let's just hope that John hasn't inherited any of it."

Or this new baby, I couldn't help but think.

John crawled over to Ricky and the two sat down, flipping through a book.

Dad waltzed back through the kitchen, an obvious smirk on his face. "You know, Amy, your next baby – when you're about thirty, of course – better be a girl. Otherwise, you're gonna know exactly how I felt growing up with you women in the house. And it might change this old hound dog's ways, provided he's still around then, of course."

"Well, when Amy's thirty, you're gonna be what? Sixty? Hopefully you can keep up with your grandkids at that age," Ricky retorted.

"Well, your parents seem to do just fine, don't they?" Dad shrugged. "Your foster dad's about that age."

"Guys, can we please stop arguing?" I asked. I was starting to feel nauseous again and the bickering really wasn't helping at all.

"Who said I was arguing?" Dad asked, heading back toward Ashley's room.

"Okay, so can we start watching Robbie at home from now on?" Ricky grumbled. "No offense, but I really don't want to start a fight with your dad. Things are only going to get worse when he finds out you're pregnant again."

"Shut up!" I hissed. "We're not supposed to be talking about that here, remember!"

"Who's pregnant again?" Ashley asked keenly, coming into the kitchen.

"Adrian," I answered immediately.

"Nice try, but Adrian's having a baby for the first time," Ashley replied.

"Don't you dare breath a word," Ricky hissed to her.

"Amy?" she said, her eyes getting bigger. "I thought you would have learned from the first time. Are you really having another baby?"

"Ashley, please keep your voice down," I murmured. "I'm not ready to tell Mom or Dad yet. I just found out and I haven't even gone to my first appointment yet..."

"I'm not going to say anything. It's not my business to tell," she said evenly. "But seriously, Amy, have you not heard of birth control?"

"I was on birth control, thank you very much!" I hissed.

"Okay, ladies. Can we please keep this down before your dad comes back in here?" Ricky said uneasily.

"Fine," Ashley said. "But make sure this one's a girl," she shrugged, walking out of the kitchen.

"Seriously," I said in disbelief. "Can't we even get a congratulations or something?"

"When you're seventeen and having your second baby, that's not something to expect," Ricky sighed. "I'm really sorry, Amy."

"Well, I'm not. They need to get used to how things are going to be."

"But you might just need to give them time, Amy. I'm sure they're probably not going to be too thrilled at first, but they might come around to it. They came around with John, didn't they?"

"It took them a while," I said grudgingly.

"But they did come around," he said, as if that put an end to the discussion.

A cry came from Mom's bedroom. Robbie.

"Go get Robbie," Ricky sighed. "I'll turn on cartoons for John in here, okay? He gave me a swift kiss on the lips and I released a breath I didn't know I was holding.

Everything would be okay. It had to be.

* * *

Tuesday came rather quickly. Ricky and I sat in the waiting room with John. Ricky looked uneasily at the depictions of pregnancy and newborn babies around the waiting room while John played with a little girl on the floor.

"I remember when John was that little," Ricky said, looking at an Anne Geddes portrait on the wall. "It's scary how tiny they are. And then they're up crawling, walking. Running."

"Yeah, but I definitely don't miss the sleepless nights," I laughed. "You'll be doing plenty with this one to make up for all the ones you missed with John."

"I owe you that much," Ricky said, looking at John playing with the little girl. He got up and sat down with him.

"Violet, who are you playing with there?" a dark headed woman asked, leaning down to play with Ricky, John, and her daughter who looked like she was just over a year old.

"This is John," Ricky said. "He'll be two in February."

"He's at a fun age," the woman said. "I'm Maria," she said to Ricky. "Is he your oldest?" she asked Ricky.

"Yeah, my – fiancée – and I are here for our first appointment. Looks like John's getting a little brother or sister."

"Oh," Maria said, smiling up at me. I couldn't believe Ricky had just called me his fiancée. We hadn't been dating long enough to even contemplate marriage.

"Congratulations," Maria continued. "My husband Peter and I have been together for four years. We have a little boy named Oliver. He's almost three. And then Violet here is fourteen months. And we're expecting our third. And last," she said, smiling at me.

"Amy and I have been together for three years," Ricky continued. "John was a little... unexpected to say the least." I had no idea what he was doing. Was he just pulling random stuff out of his head?

"That happens," Maria shrugged. "So how did you guys come up with John?" she asked. "It's such a big name for a little boy!"

"Amy and her sister picked it out," Ricky said. "We wanted something strong and simple."

"We love baby names," Maria said. "We're thinking Piper for a girl for this one or Felix for a boy."

Ricky nodded. "Well, congrats."

"Amy Juergens?" a voice called from the door.

"That's me!" I said, getting up from the chair. Ricky picked John up and waved good-bye to Maria and Violet.

"Hi, Amy," the nurse said. Her name tag said Jenny. "I just need to get your height, weight, and the last day of your menstrual cycle."

"Five four, one fifteen, and May twenty-first," I rattled off.

"Thanks," Jenny replied. "I'll also need a urine sample. You're in here to confirm pregnancy, right?"

"Yes," I answered, taking the cup from her.

"Alright. Just stick it in the window when you're done and Dr. Masters should be out here in just a few."

"Thanks," I said, heading into the bathroom.

I came back out two minutes later with my urine sample in hand and stuck it on the counter and washed my hands.

"I can't believe you told that woman we'd been together for three years and that we were engaged," I said exasperatedly, pulling a paper towel out of the dispenser and drying off my hands. I turned around to look at Ricky, who was holding John and sitting in the chair next to the exam table. "Why?"

"I was just curious to see what it felt like to introduce you as my fiancée instead of my girlfriend. And I wanted to present you and John as my family."

"But we are your family," I said, shaking my head in confusion.

"Well, it's not official, is it?" Ricky asked. "You being part of my family?"

"I think it is. I'm not getting married in high school, Ricky. That's insane," I sighed.

"I'm not asking you to marry me. I'm John's father and I'm this baby's father and I'm your boyfriend. So that's all we need to be right now, then?" he asked.

I nodded, looking down at the floor.

A knock at the door signaled Dr. Masters' arrival.

"Hi, Amy," he said, smiling and coming around the door. "Your results should be in here in a bit. They'll denote the quantitative amount of hCG in your urine, telling us how far along you are. Have you had any symptoms?"

"A positive pregnancy test and I'm tired all the time, nauseated, my breasts are super tender, and I haven't had a period since the end of July," I replied.

Dr. Masters' eyes widened. "It's September twenty-ninth now. So have you missed two consecutive periods?"

"The next one was supposed to start today, but so far it hasn't. I just kinda have that feeling like I did with my first," I said. "He just turned two."

Dr. Masters nodded. "Well, I think that's probably what's ailing you, but I'll check your urine results to see what they say and how far along you might be."

I nodded. "Thanks."

"No problem," he replied.

Ricky stared at the door, boring a hole into it.

"What?" I asked him.

"Was he your doctor with John?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Why does it matter?"

"You were ogling him," Ricky said, setting John down for a second.

"I was not!" I insisted, shocked he would even think such a thing. "Don't let John walk around on this floor. It's dirty."

I picked John up and sat on the exam table with him.

Ricky didn't say anything else for a while.

And then Dr. Masters knocked on the door again and came back inside, a smile on his face.

"Congrats, Mama. You're already about ten weeks along, I'd say, according to your numbers. They look fine. I'll have Elizabeth schedule your follow up in another four weeks and I'll have you guys come back then. I'm going to put your hesitant due date at around April 27th and we'll get an ultrasound to confirm once you've progressed a bit. "

"That's fantastic news!" Ricky said, smiling up at me.

"Is it?" I asked as Dr. Masters walked out the door. "I mean, we weren't exactly planning on having more kids right away were we?" I couldn't help but feeling apprehensive. "And April 27 means I'm going to be having a baby right before school ends. I'm going to end up missing out of prom and maybe even finals and graduation... And I'm already ten weeks along? How on earth did I not know I was pregnant until now?" I was rambling at this point.

"It's okay," Ricky replied. "Really. We'll figure it all out. You figured it out by yourself last time at the last minute and we have a whole seven months or so to figure it out this time. It'll be just fine."

I really hoped Ricky was right but I couldn't help feeling anxious about the whole thing. My parents were definitely not going to take this well. And if Ricky and I were still planning on telling our families once I was twelve weeks along, then we only had about two weeks in which to decide how we were going to do it.

* * *

_Please review!_

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	4. Under Pressure

Chapter 4: Under Pressure

* * *

**Disclaimer:** No, I'm not Brenda Hampton. No, I don't have anything to do with TSLOTAT, outside of this fan fic. I'm just playing with the characters a bit.

* * *

Morning sickness was killer. The worst part of it was scheduling it into my mornings – I would typically rush into the bathroom right around six in the morning and vomit everything in my stomach up. And then Ricky would come around the corner and offer me a glass of water, patting me on the back and holding my hair out of my face. It would typically last a good hour and a half, therefore pressing in on the time I had to get to school. Ricky would get John dressed for me and if I wasn't quite ready to leave, he'd take John to day care and swing by and pick me up on the way to school. We had quite the system going.

I was twelve weeks along, right at the end of my first trimester. I was tired all the time and it took everything I had not to fall asleep right in the middle of class.

"Amy?"

The bell had rung and I was sitting in my seat at the back of the class, my head against the cool concrete wall, my eyes closed. I opened them blearily and saw Madison and Lauren standing right in front of me.

"What?" I asked, pulling my notebook off my desk and throwing my stuff into my tote.

"We're going to ask you something and we really don't want you to take it personal," Madison started off, looking rather nervous.

"And you don't have to tell us if you don't want to because it's really none of our business – " Lauren added anxiously.

"But we're your friends so you really should be completely open and honest with us because we would be with you if – " Madison looked over at Lauren helplessly.

"Adrian said that she was in the bathroom on the second floor and she heard someone puking in there. Your tote was sitting on the sink. You've been really moody lately and Ben overheard some guy talking about your chest the other day. You even _look_ a bit bloated," Lauren whispered.

"And why is this all such a big deal?" I sighed, getting up and picking my tote off the floor. I needed to get out of there and fast.

"You mean, you're not – " Madison looked around furtively, "_pregnant_ again?"

I dropped my tote back on the floor and whirled around.

"Who told you?" I asked, not even trying to argue with them.

"No one in particular," Madison replied.

"We just kind of put two and two together," Lauren added.

"I'm due at the end of April," I answered, picking my tote back up off the floor again. "And please, don't tell anyone. Keep this to yourselves. I'm telling my parents today."

"But..._ how?_" Madison asked, looking stunned.

"Ricky and I have been living together since mid-summer, after I got back from New York. Birth control failure, I guess," I said. "I've got to go," I added, looking at the clock above the teacher's desk. Ricky would be here to pick me up soon and then I had to go watch the kids at the day care center.

I was _so_ tired when Ricky climbed into the SUV after work. It was agreed that we would go meet my family for dinner. After we got done with my family, we were supposed to go to his family the following day for dinner to spill the news to them. I was definitely_ not_ looking forward to it.

"Any ideas on how you want to spill the news?" Ricky asked, looking over at me.

"I have an idea," I said. "I figure it's probably better to try to focus on the positives rather than focusing on the negatives of the situation. Therefore, I bought John a shirt before I came to pick you up. Take a look."

Ricky looked into the back seat and saw John smiling at him, decked out in an "I'm the Big Brother" T-shirt.

"I'm kind of curious as to how long it'll take my parents to even notice what his shirt says," I shrugged.

"You really think that's the best idea?" Ricky asked me.

"I don't want to focus on the negatives," I repeated. "We're going to act like this is a great thing for our family."

Ricky smiled at me. "This _is _a great thing for our family," he answered.

We drove the short distance from the butcher shop to my parents' house. I had forewarned Ashley that we were going to be sharing our "wonderful news" at dinner, so she was conveniently out with Griffin for the night.

We pulled into the driveway and Ricky pulled John out of the backseat. I nervously shut the driver's door and crossed my arms over my stomach anxiously.

"It'll be _fine,_ Amy," Ricky assured me. And then we were at the door leading into the kitchen, opening it, and walking inside.

"We're here," Ricky announced.

The smell of garlic was overwhelming. I couldn't help but feel a little queasy. I looked at Ricky and he shook his head and I took John from him and walked into the living room.

"Hey, Amy," Mom said, looking happy to see me. "Hi, John!" she waved to her grandson. He buried his face into my shoulder. I couldn't help but smile.

"Hi, Robbie," I said, using my free hand to wave to my little brother. He clapped his hands eagerly. "Hi, Mrs. Juergens," Ricky said, offering to take John from me. "Mr. Juergens just came into the kitchen and said that dinner's almost ready."

"You know it's Anne," Mom said to Ricky. "And finally. It's about time. I've been waiting for him to finish that lasagna for hours now, it seems like."

"Don't you usually make dinner?" I asked Mom, surprised that Dad even had the slightest hint about how to make lasagna.

"He was just supposed to take it out of the oven and put the Parmesan on top and then put it back in," she sighed. "Of course, he barely ever gets it right."

Ricky smirked at me and the five of us headed into the kitchen.

"Dang it, George!" Mom sighed, sitting Robbie in his high chair. "You forgot to take the bread out of the oven!" she yelled.

"Oops!" Dad yelled from outside. "I was getting drinks out here!"

Mom opened the oven and pulled out the bread before throwing it in the trash can. So _that_ was the garlic that was making me so nauseated. I focused once more on not getting up and running out of the room. It was difficult.

"At least we have salad and rolls," Mom sighed. "Too bad for the garlic."

Ricky sat John down into the high chair and went over to the counter to make John some juice in his sippy cup. He sat the cup on John's tray and headed outside.

"So what's been going on with you and Ricky?" Mom asked me, taking a seat on the other side of Robbie. "Anything exciting?"

"Lots," I replied, focusing on pouring myself some milk. "School's been exhausting, work almost as much so, and I haven't really had time for anything other than school, work, and John."

"As usual," Mom agreed. She looked over at John, who sat his sippy cup down on the tray and smiled at her.

"He's getting bigger. I miss not having him around all the time, but Robbie keeps me busy enough," she smiled. "Is that a new shirt?" she asked.

"Yeah," I said, ignoring the knots in my stomach. She wouldn't be mad. She _couldn't_ be mad. Disappointed, maybe, but never mad. "I picked it up for him today."

"It's cute," she said. "What's it say on the front?"

I didn't answer her.

John knocked his sippy cup off the tray and raised his arms up high, looking for someone to pick it up for him. I leaned down to get it, hoping Mom would quickly see the point of the shirt.

"I'm... the big_ brother?_" I heard her read aloud. "Amy Hannah Juergens!"

I sat up and handed John his sippy cup again.

"What?" I asked, trying to keep a straight face.

"You're having another _baby?_" she asked, looking completely floored.

"I was on birth control. It was an accident. But Ricky and I are stable enough right now and he graduates right after I'm due and then he'll be taking online college courses and working more while I finish high school and work at the day care."

I _wished_ Ricky would hurry up and get back in the kitchen so I wouldn't have to fend all of my mom's shock and disappointment all on my own.

"Still, Amy! Two babies before you're even eighteen? Were you even _thinking_ of the consequences of your actions?" I didn't think her eyes could get any bigger.

"I must have missed a pill or something. I was taking them religiously, Mom." Okay, so that was a small white lie. But I didn't want her to think I was _totally _irresponsible. "Besides, you and Dad had me and Ashley in the space of two years. I think Ricky and I can handle it."

"Your father and I were married by the time Ashley came along," Mom reminded me.

"But not for very long. I'm only seventeen. I'm not going to get married right away and definitely not until I know that's the right thing to do. Ricky and I are still dating and both of us are actually _excited_ about this baby. We're taking things one step at a time."

"How far along are you?" Mom asked me.

"Twelve weeks. I just found out about two weeks ago and we wanted to wait and make sure everything was okay before we told people," I answered.

Mom sighed. "I can't say I'm happy about this, but there's nothing that can be done about it now. Looks like John's going to be a big brother. But just you wait, Amy Juergens. Once your father hears about this, it's going to be _all_ over. He's going to flip out."

I nodded.

Mom looked shaken as she got up and put the lasagna dish on the table. She headed outside and I wondered what was taking Ricky so long. Was he outside telling my dad about the baby while I told my mom?

And then they were back inside, Dad wearing the biggest grin on his face that I'd ever seen. He kissed John on the top of the head, completely ignoring his shirt, proclaiming his newly established big brotherhood to the world, and took a seat across from me. Ricky sat down next to me.

"What was all of that about?" I asked him. He merely shrugged and poured himself a glass of milk. Mom brought over the rolls in the bread basket and the four of us sat down. I offered John some fruit and a roll and we all started eating dinner.

Mom shot me a look and I sighed, looking over at Dad.

"So how is my oldest daughter doing?" he asked me. "School, work, baby?"

"Fine," I answered.

"And you," he asked Ricky. "How's the job at the butcher shop going?"

"I was actually going to wait to tell Amy with you guys," Ricky answered. "I'm supposed to be promoted to assistant manager at the end of the month. It'll be plenty enough to support the four of us."

"Four of us?" Dad asked, looking from Ricky to me to John. John squealed, smashing his pears into the tray of the high chair. "Did you guys get a dog or something?"

Sometimes I wondered how ignorant my dad could be. But Ricky getting a promotion? That was amazing!

"No," Ricky said, shaking his head. Mom looked from me to Dad as Ricky announced, "We're having another baby."

Dad's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. "Is that what the conversation outside was about?" he gaped.

I had no idea what conversation he was talking about, so I looked over to Ricky in confusion. He sighed and Dad got up, taking his plate with him to the living room. The roar of the TV signaled that he was blocking out the rest our conversation.

"What conversation was he talking about?" I asked Ricky.

"It doesn't matter," he replied. "I was just asking him hypotheticals at any rate."

"As long as the two of you are serious about doing this, then you'll be fine. The promotion at work helps, Ricky. But won't you be working longer hours?" Mom asked.

"Yeah, but once I graduate, I'll be able to work while Amy's in school after the baby's born. John can go to the day care center while Amy's in school and I can work at night and watch the new baby during the day for the first few weeks until it's old enough to go to day care. I was thinking about asking Leo whether I can change the den into a second bedroom and that way, John can move into there and the baby can take his spot next to the bed. I've really thought all of this out."

I was surprised at the detail into which he'd thought about everything. He seemed to really have everything under control and for the first time, I thought I could breathe.

"But what about college, Ricky? You're going to need a degree of some sort..." Mom trailed off, looking worried.

"I figured I could take a semester or so off and start online classes in the spring. I know I'm going to need a degree. But my family comes first and they need me right now," he said, shrugging. "Everything else comes next."

Mom sighed. "I'm really not thrilled about this, not yet at least, but at least the two of you seem a little more prepared this time. And Amy loves you, Ricky. So she's going to do whatever is necessary to make things work. She proved that she was capable of that through everything with John. It's just a little too early to repeat things all over again, in my book."

"But Anne, it's not repeating things. It's starting over and this time, I'm going to be there every step of the way." Ricky reached under the table and squeezed my hand. I tried my best to keep from bawling.

Mom sighed and looked over at me. "I think I need to have a talk with your father, Amy. I'll give you a call when we've gotten things worked out, okay?"

I nodded. That was our signal that it was time to leave. I gave my mom a hug and then picked up John and changed his now fruit-splattered shirt into a fresh one. I handed him to Ricky and the three of us headed out the door.

* * *

_Please review!_

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	5. Stand or Fall

Chapter 4: Stand or Fall

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the long delay... I've had a bunch of stuff going on! Hopefully this gets you guys excited for TSLOTAT on Monday though! I can't wait!

* * *

The next day was Wednesday, Ricky's day to work late at the butcher shop. He came upstairs after his shift ended and I already had John dressed and he was snoozing in his play pen.

"You okay?" Ricky asked me.

"I'm fine," I answered. "Just tired."

He nodded and carefully pulled John out of his play pen. His head lolled to the side on Ricky's shoulder and we headed out to the car.

"Ricky, how do you think your parents are going to take the news?" I asked as we made our way to Ricky's parents' house. I wasn't naïve enough to believe that the Shakurs would take the news incredibly well had they been presented with a T-shirt like my parents had been. Ricky thought it would be best to simply present them with the facts and what we were planning to do. And the more I thought about it, that was the secondary approach he'd taken with my family.

"My mom will probably be disappointed and my dad will probably take me into another room and yell at me," Ricky shrugged. "But they know that I already have a life with you and although we haven't officially been together very long, it's not like they would be as angry as if I had gotten someone else pregnant. They know you and they know that you and I have a long history. So when I tell them what the plan is, they might even look forward to having another grandson or a granddaughter."

"Your family is a lot less... crazy," I chimed.

Ricky merely nodded, looking out at the road as he drove.

He took one hand off the wheel and held my hand as we made our way down the road. I wasn't sure what to say... the rest of the car ride was taken in silence. Silence that had not yet betrayed the fury going on inside my confused mind.

We arrived at Ricky's parents' house a few minutes later. Despite having John, I hadn't really spent too much time with the Shakurs. I knew _of _Margaret and how she had been the person that had helped Ricky become the father to John that he was meant to be. I knew that because of his foster parents, Ricky had wanted to become a great father to John, just like the Shakurs had been wonderful parents to him. I also knew that he wanted to break the cycle of abuse.

So it was with a bit of anxiety that I held my son as Ricky knocked on the door and Margaret opened it, letting us inside.

"What a wonderful surprise!" she exclaimed, smiling widely. "And you've even brought the beautiful Amy."

"Thank you," I said, blushing.

"What brings you here?" she asked her son, looking at him with a keen eye.

"A lot," Ricky said, looking down and away from her. "Perhaps we could sit down for dinner or something?" His tone had changed from optimistic to nervous and I began to feel his anxiety deep within my stomach.

"We've already had dinner," Sanjay piped up from the hallway, coming out to greet us.

"Oh," Ricky said.

"Sit down, sit down," Sanjay said, gesturing to the couch. Margaret took John from Ricky and we made our way to the couch.

"Isn't a bit late for you to be up, Mister?" Margaret teased John, smiling at him. He buried his face into her shoulder.

"His bedtime is usually around eight-thirty, but this is kind of important," Ricky continued. I sat on the couch, waiting for things to settle down.

"Here, we'll just put you in your play pen and let you try to get some sleep," Margaret told John, setting him in the Pack-N-Play by the couch. He sat down and started playing with his toys.

"So, what's going on?" she asked, coming over to sit on the couch next to where we were sitting on the love seat.

Ricky didn't answer her right away. He took a deep breath and Sanjay came over to sit next to Margaret.

"Something's wrong," Sanjay said, frowning.

"Not wrong exactly," I said, looking over at Ricky.

"We're having another baby," Ricky said, looking at his parents.

Ricky's parents looked at the two of us in shock.

"You're having _another_ baby?" Margaret asked. Sanjay simply got up and walked into the other room.

"It wasn't on purpose and I was on birth control," I said. It was _so_ awkward talking about this to Ricky's parents, especially because I didn't know them very well.

"We're keeping the baby," Ricky said. "I got a promotion at work and we're turning the den into a second bedroom at the apartment. That's going to be John's room and the new baby will be able to sleep where John sleeps with us. It's going to be fine."

"Have you gotten prenatal care? How far along are you?" Margaret asked, looking at me.

"Twelve weeks. We saw the doctor two weeks ago," I said. "Everything seems fine."

Margaret nodded. "Neither of you are ready to be parents to John, let alone parents to two children," she said, looking directly at Ricky. "I'm disappointed in you, Ricky. You should have known better, especially since this has already happened once."

"I'm making plans. _We're_ making plans. I got the promotion to Assistant Manager and we already get free day care since Amy works at the day care center. I work right under Bunny and the savings we're saving up from now until the baby gets here will be enough to get us started. John is almost two, so we'll be able to get him in a big boy bed by that point and we can re-use his crib. It'll be _fine_. Okay?"

Margaret nodded. "It's not what I want for you guys, but I can't be upset about having another grandchild. Especially since the two of you will have the means to take care of him or her. But shouldn't the two of you be talking about some kind of commitment to each other? Not marriage, but a step toward that?"

Ricky paled. "Maybe," he said. "We haven't talked much about it."

"But you're talking about it and that's a start," she said. "John's fast asleep," she added, looking over the couch into the Pack-N-Play. "He should probably be at home. If you guys need anything at all, just let us now. I think I need to go talk to your father," she added, looking at Ricky.

I got up and picked up a sleeping John and Ricky followed me out the door.

We headed back home and I couldn't help but compare the two experiences of telling our parents. One thing was still on my mind, though.

"So what was the big thing you talked to my dad about last night?" I asked him.

His cheeks turned a bit pink and I knew he was blushing.

"I'm guessing it wasn't about the baby?" I asked him slowly.

He shook his head. "No, it wasn't."

"Then why would my dad have come into the kitchen with such a big smile on his face?" I asked, confused.

"Because I asked him for permission to ask you to marry me," he replied, his blush becoming even more pronounced. "It's not like I was planning on doing it anytime soon. I just wanted to know what he'd think about it."

I was shocked. After his conversation with the Maria lady at the doctor's office when we had confirmed the pregnancy, I knew marriage was somewhere in some dark crevice of his mind, but I didn't think he would actually go as far as voicing that option to anyone, especially my dad. And I didn't think my dad would be as happy about it as what it seemed he had been right before he found out about the pregnancy.

"Amy, say something?" Ricky pressed, looking over at me worriedly.

"I really don't know what to say," I replied. "I mean, marriage is a big step. I don't know if I'll be ready to actually_ be_ married by the time the baby gets here..." I trailed off.

"It was more the engagement than anything. We could have a long one. It's not like I'd ask you to marry me tonight and then we'd be married by Friday or something. It's just something I thought we could think about, but I didn't feel right talking about it until I had your dad's permission."

"Who knew you were so old-fashioned," I teased.

"There's a lot of things I don't share with everyone," he said seriously. "This would be one of them."

I was surprised. I wasn't sure if I was ready to take that step with Ricky. I was surprised that _he_ was actually thinking about it. I didn't want him to propose if he didn't feel ready to or if he was merely doing it out of obligation. I wanted him to marry me because he _loved_ me.

And so Monday rolled around. 12 ½ weeks. I was anxious. Outside of our families, we still hadn't told anyone. I was becoming more and more isolated, not talking to anyone outside of Ricky and our families. I went to school, ate lunch with Ricky, drove to the day care center and worked, and then drove home with John and started dinner. I was constantly hungry.

A knock on the door distracted me from the stir-fry simmering on the stove. I got up and answered the door, surprised to see Adrian standing on the other side of it.

"Adrian?" I asked, smiling and letting her in.

"I know I should have called first, but I was already down the street," she said, heading into the living room, one hand placed at her back as she waddled into the room.

"You're fine," I said, walking back toward the kitchen. "I'm just cooking," I called. "You're more than welcome to have a seat over here," I added, nodding to the kitchen table.

"Hi, John!" I heard Adrian say. I looked around the corner and saw John wave from his Pack-N-Play at Adrian.

"So what brings you here?" I asked Adrian, as I headed back over to the stir-fry and pulled out a few plates. "Would you like to stay for dinner? Ricky should be done downstairs in a few and we're having an Asian stir-fry and steamed rice for dinner."

"Sure," Adrian replied. "I just wanted to talk to you about a few things before Ricky got done with work," she said.

"Oh?" I asked, preparing the plates.

"This is really none of my business, but I thought you should know what people are saying," she said, one hand resting on top of her belly. She looked down and played with the ring on her finger.

"What's that?" I asked, a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"Are you and Ricky having another baby?" she asked, looking up at me.

My eyes grew wide in shock. "Is that what people are saying?" I asked shrilly.

"Well that gives me the answer," Adrian said, a slight smile crossing her face. "How far along are you?"

I bit my lip hesitantly. Should I really admit the truth to her? Obviously, she already knew...

"I don't know what you're talking about," I said, deciding to deny it.

"Honey, either you've eaten way too much Asian food lately, or that's definitely a baby bump," she said, nodding to the curve of my stomach that was evident through the tank top I was wearing. "It's not like I'm going to go and tell the world, what with me due any day now," she laughed.

"Fine," I said, bringing over two plates and sitting them down at the table. I walked back over and started making John's dinner. "I'm almost 13 weeks. We haven't told anyone outside of family yet."

"Does Ben know?" she asked quietly.

"I haven't told him and Ricky isn't one for telling details of his private life, so I'm going to guess not," I replied. "And please, don't tell him. I don't trust him not to go off telling people."

"I won't tell him, but you do realize that you're not going to be able to hide this for much longer," Adrian said, looking at me carefully.

"I know, but I'd rather not tell people until I absolutely have to. I wasn't showing with John until about four months and I wasn't _really_ showing until closer to five. I have time."

"This is your second pregnancy, honey. You're going to start showing sooner with this one," she said.

"I know..." I sighed, bringing John's plate over to his high chair. I walked over to pick him up from his Pack-N-Play.

"How did Ricky take it?" she asked.

"He was actually rather great about the whole thing," I said, setting John down in front of his plate. "Can you believe he asked my dad for permission to_ marry_ me? I mean, we're not getting married right now – that's just crazy. But I was completely floored with how well he took it."

"That's great, though. You've turned Ricky into a family man after all," she smirked. "Have you thought of names yet?"

I just stared at her and couldn't help but laugh. I tried to cover my laughter with my hand. "You know, you're the first person to really act as if this is real. Ricky's all talking about how we're going to make it work, how we're going to move John out of our room for the baby and everything... but he's yet to really start talking about the baby as a person," I smiled.

Adrian nodded. "I think it's really just now starting to hit Ben that we're going to have a _baby_ in the house in just a few days or weeks." She changed the subject back. "So, names?"

"I think I want to stick with something traditional, like John's name," I said. "I haven't cleared anything with Ricky yet, but I really like Thomas for a boy. And Claire for a girl."

"Cute," Adrian commented.

"What about names for your little girl?" I asked.

"Nice try," Adrian laughed. "We're keeping it secret until she's born."

The sound of the key in the lock caused us both to turn around as Ricky walked into the living room.

"Daddy!" John squealed, rolling his head around to try to catch a glimpse of his father.

"Hey guys, Adrian," Ricky said, heading over to tickle John. "Messy face," he teased John, whose face was covered in steamed rice. He headed into the kitchen and took his plate off the table. "Looks fantastic, Amy." He turned around and headed back to the table. "Adrian, you look like you're going to pop at any second. How much longer until the kid's here?"

"I'm due in about two weeks," Adrian replied. "But I doubt she'll really make it that long."

"It's a girl?" he asked.

"Yeah," Adrian replied.

"Name?"

"I already tried asking her that, but they're not telling," I teased.

Ricky smiled. "Think we can get away with that?" He froze. "I – I mean, you think _they_ can get away with that?"

"It's okay, Ricky. Amy already told me you guys are having another baby," Adrian replied.

Ricky looked back over at me, a look of surprise on his face. "She won't say anything to anyone. Besides, I'm already showing a bit," I shrugged. "Apparently people at school are already wondering and Adrian came over saying she heard from a rumor going around school."

"Honey, I'm sorry you're going to have to go back to that in the fall," Ricky sighed.

"It's fine," I replied. "Just one more year and then hopefully we'll both be done with it," I sighed.

"At any rate, I should be going. Ben's probably going to go nuts since I'm not home yet," Adrian sighed.

"Well, call me when you get home, okay?" I reminded Adrian. "I don't want you to have that baby on the way home or something," I laughed.

"Ha! Cute," Adrian replied sarcastically, taking her purse off of the coat rack and waddling toward the door.

* * *

_Sorry it's taken me so long to update! I'll definitely try to update more often! I'm about halfway done with the next chapter._

_Please review!_

_By the way, I've started a new weblog full of my original work. I'll be updating that regularly, too! If you guys want to take a looksies and review some of that, you're more that welcome to. The address is _**LeahAnneOriginals at blogspot dot com**_._

_Once again, thanks for reading!_

_Much love,  
xoxo_


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